Five things to know about the Samsung Galaxy Note 9's camera

Five things to know about the Samsung Galaxy Note 9's camera

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 made its debut today at a high-profile launch event in New York. While we knew not to expect any new camera hardware thanks to numerous leaks, we still found a few interesting new features under the hood.

I'm sure it does an ok job, but it STILL does not get around the issue of the SIZE of each photosensor. They are very small and I think they would be better off to cut the number of sensors almost in 1/2, and double the size of EACH photosensor.

Another thing worth knowing about the Note 9: it has an effing headphone jack. That is super key, as my work vehicle's options for audio in are either a headphone jack or one of those janky bluetooth-to-FM transmitters that are all over Amazon for $14.99. Much prefer to use a headphone jack, and I spend about four to six hours a day in my work vehicle so this matters a lot to me.

Not for nothing but it's pretty easy to add an unobtrusive BT adapter to any car with an aux input. Something like Anker's SoundSync or iClever's Himbox can be really convenient, I've been using the latter for a few years (and a Kensington unit even before I had a smartphone)... They work best in cars that have the 12v port near the aux in so you don't need to run cables this way or that.

I'm looking pretty hard at this phone. I've been ready to upgrade for a while now, but haven't been totally satisfied by any of the available options. What attracts me about the Note 9 is the S-pen, which would be super useful for making local adjustments in Lightroom Mobile. I hope that they've tweaked the camera performance a bit from the S9+, as I wasn't very impressed with what I read about that. In particular, I would really like a robust HDR mode like the Pixel 2 has. I'm agnostic about the AI stuff—normally I'm a fan of manual control and having a camera that doesn't try to tell me what to do, but in a phone I really just want pleasing photos with minimal effort, so I'm ready to embrace it as long as it works well. I'm not concerned about the handling of the funny screen, as I'd be putting it in a case regardless.

What I like about HDR+ is that it's seamless—it's just on all the time as a part of the camera's default behavior. And I think that the results it delivers are excellent, from what I've seen—natural looking, yet with good color and detail in both highlight and shadow areas. I honestly don't care for LR Mobile's camera, I find it annoying. In a phone, I just want a camera that basically does everything for me and does it well. I have dedicated cameras for when I want to tinker.

LR Mobile is nice but you need to figure out how to handle RAW files. So fa storage on phones has been very limited.

May be if you get the 512GB storage option on the note 9 you can actually copy the raw files using USB from camera. That could really change things. I can see my whole trip loaded to phone and having phone blast the RAW files to cloud overnight. Of course it means paying extra to Adobe for their cloud. 1TB comes at about 10$ extra to your photoshop subscription.

I store my RAWs on my laptop (and on Dropbox). I edit Smart Previews in Lightroom Mobile, which are generally fine for web publishing. If I need a full-res version I go back to my laptop and export from Lightroom Classic CC, since all my edits sync between Mobile and Classic CC. Of course, if I'm shooting directly on my phone then I have the original right there, whether that's a JPEG or a RAW.

Robert Zanatta micro SD cards today peak at 128GB and are generally much slower. As well the second SIM card cannot be installed if you add micro SD. Last but not least micro SD cards fail much more often than people expect them to - I had couple fail on me.

So 512GB built in is indeed a very big deal and makes the whole Adobe mobile photography push look a bit more realistic..

Right, but I'm not sure these are the ones to complain. Oneplus 6 is probably faster and might have even better battery life and it cost 500-550$ (sometimes less than 500) for the 128\8GB version.The Note is overpriced.I don't argue that it's a good phone, I'm sure it is.. I just can't justify the extra $$$. I really depends what you're looking for in a phone but the note doesn't have anything we haven't seen before.

Or maybe everyone just agrees that those are the five biggest features, and there's not much more to say in this type of article? I don't personally find the "what you need to know" articles all that interesting as usually they basically just digest the key points from the product announcement, but they are what they are. I imagine we'll see a full review of this phone soon, and that it will be much more informative.

Here is what I propose... put a calendar reminder to revisit this subject in the next 2 to 3 years and then let me know how bright you are. I presume your primary camera is a dslr right? Go ahead and set it next to your laptop in the landfill before you stop back by...

I have the S9+, and the camera is great (for taking pictures of things that are hard to see deep in engine bays, under cars, behind computers, and shopping lists, etc). Otherwise, I only use a cell phone camera to take photographs in those very rare occasions when I see something I absolutely must capture but don't have a "real camera" handy...

If the camera is good enough though, it gives you the option of leaving your dedicated camera at home more often. When I'm just out and about and not specifically doing photography, I don't always want a dedicated cam with me. I do always have my phone though, so I want its camera to be as good as it can be for those times when I suddenly find myself wanting to take some pictures.

There are rare occasions when the extraordinary depth of field the small format cell phone cameras offer is helpful and useful, but I find it doesn't lend itself to my style of photography, hence its' primary function of capturing shopping lists.

Always someone with smart mouthSenior dwl017, you missed the point. 30 million is relative and is an all time low that neither the board of Samsung nor the stock market will be so kind to the company about.

I've had three edge phones now. I'd pay $100 extra to get it flat. The edge, it turns out, is actually rather limiting. The only use I've found was the "night clock" option, which put the AoD clock so you can see it in bed with the phone flat on the nightstand (/charger). And since Samsung buries that option 4 latyers deep in Settings, and only implemented the auto-switchover to Night Clock on the Note 7 (not on the S7E, eliminated in the S8/N8), it's not worth the hassle.

I think they will sell many Note 9's but not because of the curved display. It's part of Samsungs distinctive design language, Sitting on your desk the phone looks great, which appeals to the customer segment that Samsung has in mind for this phone.

That said I agree that the curved display no longer serves a practical purpose. You could even say that it has a negative impact on both media consumption and the way you physically operate the phone. It originally did serve a purpose, because it enabled a new kind of "sideways" display functionality but Samsung has not stuck with that idea. Instead the curve has been diminished and now serves only an asthetical purpose.

Personally I prefer an entirely flat display. I own a Note 4 (which has sadly now died completely on me) and I still think this phone holds its own in terms of design, even today. I would love to see what Samsung might be able to come up with for a phone with a completely flat screen.

JordanATI have the 7edge and allow it looks cool, it stinks for handling. Both in slippery sides and that touching the edge often, way too often is seen by the phone that you want to do something. I'll take flat any day and next phone I won't buy the curved edge.

MB ... I'll bet you a Starbucks... the note 9 does not meet sales expectations.

Why are cellphone cameras designed for amateur or novice photographers? I always post-edit my pix from my Note 8 and Galaxy S8 right in the phone using freeware. Takes less than 30 seconds per shot. 30 minutes to learn online. Results are always far better than any cellphone AI software and rivals DSLR.

So Sammy, what's the reason to pay so much more for such elementary, marginal, and subjective improvements? Where's your real innovation? Will it be in the S10? I'm waiting!

"identifies subject matter and sorts the photo into one of 20 categories automatically. Saturation, white balance, brightness and contrast are adjusted accordingly."

So if I take a photo that doesn't "fit" into one of the 20 categories (which is highly likely unless I'm shooting groups, portraits or landscapes), then the phone will set inappropriate saturation, white balance, brightness and contrast?

I'd put it another way - 95% of the people who only take snaps of people or scenery should get slightly "improved" results by using this feature, but anyone who has any imagination and wants to photograph anything else is likely to find it a waste of time.

What comes next - automated composition? What a great idea that would be - if the composition didn't conform to the smartphones little list of 20 categories, it would refuse to take the snap!

i don't know entoman, that sounds like a great idea. you compose the picture by selecting items on the screen, move them around the way you would like them to be, then take the picture. Awesome. say you're at the Grand Canyon, you slide yourself over a little bit, make yourself look super cool standing on the edge, Click. that there my friend is a billion dollar idea.

Automated composition is already kind of a thing, albeit it's gimmicky at this stage. There are AIs that will evaluate your photos for "artistic quality". It's not a big step to a camera app that suggests in real time that you back up, move forward, tilt, turn, etc. in order to make your photo look as "good" as possible. I'm sure something like that is coming. My concern is that while it may raise the floor by allowing novices to take better-composed pictures, it may also lower the ceiling by encouraging photographers to make their photos conform to the AI's standards.

The AI stuff on this phone though I am fine with. I'd give it a try and then turn it off if I disliked it. I don't see how it hurts anything, and it may help. I want myphone camera to be as effortless as possible. What would be great is if I could train its AI by rating its output, so that it could learn what I like and make decisions that are closer to what my own would be if I took the time to do it myself.

Love all the asshats posting here saying I won't buy it lol so don't buy. Samsung is a multi-billion dollar global corporation, they don't need your poor ass money. Meanwhile, millions globally continue to spend over 1k on the latest iPhone and smile when they pay for it. Gotta love the fake outrage over the price.

Some phones are getting three cam modules at back now. I would prefer one ultra-wide like 14mm eq f2. One standard like 40mm 1.8 stabilized and one 100mm f2.x stabilized too. 1/1.7 sensors with 16mpix to allow slight cropping for 4k viewing. How about you?

@odpisan Funnier still, a guy at Anandtech claimed that the DxO results are bad, and because DxO tested the device on preproduction firmware.Anyway, this is from the DxO review: http://joxi.net/bmoBxNEI379B6r

Do not be hysterical about "spying on us" - except if u are a VIP. Ordinary people are not important.WHAT can China do with spying on me - everyday man, 68 years old, pensioner, minding only 4 my photography? :o)))

I think the way they design the phones, is they purposefully cripple the first model and then take away those issues in the second model. For example, I'm sure Samsung knew the position of the fingerprint scanner in the S8 and Note 8 was awful, but by putting it there, they had an easy "upgrade" to justify the S9 and Note 9. Same for the size of the battery and screen size.

@grafguy As long as there idi@# ready to pay 1800 USD for a phone every year - why not? At the same time the sensible price phones get better and better . There is something for everyone.

The funny thing is that if you take a 500 USD phone and market it as a 1500 USD phone 99% of those @#%& will never notice the difference. And that is why this is being done quite successfully. It always cheaper to be smart :-))

"I'm sure Samsung knew the position of the fingerprint scanner in the S8 and Note 8 was awful"

People who bought the S8, will not buy the S9, unless they are have lots of money or are crazy about the latest technology. They will hold on to their S8 for a few years (unless they have a special deal with their network).

All it will do it make people switch to another brand to 'try' them out....

Some people can't be arsed to wait or desperately need a new phone, I'm probably the opposite, I milked my Nexus 5 for a good 3 years and I intend to do the same with my Pixel (didn't use the prior 3 phones to the N5 for more than a year each)... I just don't have much of a reason to upgrade these days.

I just don’t understand why you’d make that comment when, specification wise, it is not. Maybe it’s because it’s got a shiny Apple logo on it and you’re being overcharged for the privelige ... maybe to you that’s why it’s ‘better’? Please advise with facts to support your (rather silly) comment.

No other mobile device has Wacom emr pen support, this alone makes it worth it for some. Then add the fact it has a large 4000mah battery, which should make through a heavy usage day. Plus the $1250 price is for the 512gb variant, which is a lot for a mobile phone.

Well you can always make that argument.... "for some", but cell phone makers are not in the business of making "for some" they are in the biz of making for tens of millions and if they don't satisfy that market, they lose....They will lose again on this one.

@electrophoto : I have used from the first iPhone to current iPhone X, but I had used Samsung Note 2 for a few year in order to have "Android experience" (for development). For some reason, the photos produced during that time were my best mobile photos ever. Slightly more saturated, but despite the low resolution, I am still amazed how good the pictures were when I looked them back once in a while. A friend of mine even told me that I should do some exhibition with those pictures.

i said it was ancient you said outdated thanks for clearing that up ,,,lol

it still has a real respectable glass zoom lens with actual apertures and a small but real sensor......... whatever it is it makes cellphones of today seem a toy

not a few plastic lentils masquerading as a lens and an even smaller sensor incapable of an aperture due to its absurd tininessand importantly since you missed the point a portrait without a 28 mmm fov and its horrible distortion

but the real point is its a camera ... something these cellphones wannabe but will never be....

Look at DXO for Note 4 vs S9+ as an example.. if it weren't for my Note 4 having horrid battery issues and a couple of other issues, I would have kept it into year 6. A lot of photo/camera improvements are more of adding a 2nd lens and/or software. Looking at DXO, there are some disturbing steps back. Yes DXO is not the end all be all but one has to have some referential point with the understanding there's going to be a bit of real world variances. The point is - get past the hype and ask and/or play with the devices and see what you are really getting.

Meh, A bit bigger S9+ with a stylus. Wait for the next Qualcomm S855 SOC, that's going to be the largest leap in performance, lower power etc, for a long time. I've skipped S835, and S845, S825 is still doing the job well.

I still have old Note 4 and almost good running nut battery life old drain 3 hours before 10 hours. Upgrade new battery but still same. So I still not decide upgrade new smartphone yet. Maybe Note 9 or iPhone X or so.

I have the Note 4 too. Recently picked up a rooted one to play with / transition to slowly in parallel with my original Note 4 (and keep cases and batteries compatible), and without all the bloatware, it's actually pretty snappy. I think more modern ones (ie, 2016 models instead of 2014 lol) actually sound a little better on calls, so I plunked down $140 for an LG V20 to try out -- the last flagship phone with a removable battery, if I'm not mistaken. Plus, it's got both 64GB and SD slot. Nice!

Oh, @PDD: Once I was set up and running on the new Note 4, I factory reset the old one and the battery life was noticeably better. You might have a borked package running amok and draining the battery.

Kelstertx. It’s funny how today’s latest and greatest phone can be seen as a tortoise in 2 years time, despite most people’s usage not changing. Like you, I always buy 2 yr technology and save myself a packet whilst still enjoying the upgrade!

As mentioned previously before mine finally met its maker but would have kept it. Played with my wife's note 8 and went pixel 2 XL. SOOO happy. And just got Android Pie yesterday. And half the price new of note 9. Patience and pragmatism wins everyday.

I still dream of the day when most mobile phone companies will put at least a 1/1.7 sensor (like the P20 pro) or a bigger 1 inch sensor and a main or secondary camera that is at least 24mm for landscapes. The LG V10 to V30 was a good idea if only they made the sensor on the wide angle lens better.

I just bought new LG G6 and was disapointed by relative softness of the ultra-wideangle lens initially. Then someone noted that you get much better results from ported Google Pixel camera app as it does not oversharpen and smear detail with excessive noise reduction as oroginal LG camera app. The results are still not perfect under pixel peeping but I am happy with them now.

Like Vit, I also use the Google Pixel software port with great results on both my LG V20 and Samsung Note8. It is a reaslly nice option to have, especially for point and shoot situations when you don’t feel like fiddling with the manual settings or for challenging dynamic range scenarios.

On such a small sensor, the RAW/DNG advantages decline with the sensor size. Not only I but many others online (including pros) have a hard time even recreating the jpg result. It will get worse with digital cameras and smartphones quietly taking and combining multiple images, along with image databases - humans will not be able to consistently keep up, let alone in milliseconds.I keep wishing for the same, but we need bigger sensors to make it worthwhile.

I've had a multitude of cameraphones that shoot raw from both Samsung and Sony, currently on a S8, and the DNG output is pretty spectacular on the S8. The Sony's with their 21-23mp sensor were junk by comparison. Of course, the S8 doesn't compare to my full-frame 6D, but for memories and casual snaps, it does pretty darn great. Lightroom seems to be able to pull a lot of info out of the DNG files. It did take me awhile to get a preset configured how I want, but now I have, I just apply that preset to all my S8 DNG files. For holiday photos, the results are comparable to my Olympus mirrorless with kit lens in good light (put a more expensive prime on and the difference is more visible). So, cut a long story short, I really like the DNG on the S8 and am looking forward to the S10. But I really wish any telephoto was also DNG enabled.

LR mobile works because it takes HDR DNGs, if they were regular DNGs from the 1/3.x" secondary sensor I wouldn't count on them either. A successful HDR DNG from the main sensor (which is essentially the same as last generation's) could match the DR of recent m4/3s and some older APS-Cs. 2 stops added both ways and much cleaner shadows even at base ISO. If it could merge the secondary sensor's results I think it could still match a 1".

@BrightTiger: "...pros) have a hard time even recreating the jpg result".Well I don't want to recreating the jpg result.For the jpg looks good on a smartphone but not so on a 27" screen.I don't like their way of sharpening.But you are right the sensors are too small.

Huawei troll? Samsung never mentioned "AI“, it avoided using the cliche and instead used "intelligent", Bixby was also ahead of Huawei all along, this has nothing to do with Huawei.

Also Huawei's "AI" scene detection is its biggest failure. This is the only aspect where both professional reviewers and amateur reviewers agree on, that it's gimmicky, over the top, and should be kept off.

I'm not a troll, i'm just commenting on what i see. If you desire to troll, go somewhere else and do that.

Samsung uses a different wording for the exact same thing, that's the difference. But it's behaviour will be the same. The failure you speak of has been improved in the recent firmware updates. It's effect has been greatly toned down, in previous releases it was unusuable, now it is better but not perfect.

Really? “a different wording for the exact same thing”What irony, as if compacts years old didn't have "scene detection mode", or "intelligent auto" to bake filters into JPGs, now Huawei calls it "AI". Everything has to be about the Huawei doesn't it?

You have no idea at all what you're talking about. The NPU doesn't do any calculations that CPUs, GPUs and many DSPs can't. Whether there is real "AI", at this point, depends on an actual machine learning algorithm, which you have no proof for.

While the NPU executes certain calculations much more efficiently, it doesn't make the tiniest amount of difference to the end user until the algorithm applied in reality 1. Is complex and specialized enough to drag down Qualcomm's solution AND 2. Has an actual advantage in end results compared to conventional algorithms.

There is no proof at all of the former. The latter is simply not true.

In other words, the software is *everything* for an "AI", the hardware is only an accelerator. If your "AI" is crap, then with the NPU you're only running crap quicker,

The only thing I really need to know is that I won't buy one. (I just prefer a flip phone, I like buttons for texting.) But some very interesting technology nonetheless. I hope AI and computational photography gets incorporated more into conventional cameras.

every website tells me its an amazing new phone. but for some reason no website can tell me if this phone can record 1080x120fps. oh i read about the 960fps in some resolution nobody uses but does it 120fps in 1080

does look good. AT&T is offering buy one get one free, my girlfriend wants one. i may finally have to upgrade from my note-4. 4K@60 and 1080@240. finally. i was going to hold out for a higher rez. camera. but.... BOGOF.

yeah, not in the USA so no AT&T here. ill just buy it for a 999 euro, thats the actual price. but atleast i get the VAT back. i was looking at a point and shoot like the sony rx100 V but this phone i can use on a DJI osmo mobile 2 for v-logging. and for the B rol i can use this one too. and it should be just fine for video work for what i do. release here is 24 august.

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